Timber preservation



.1 1927. Aug H. c. GARDINER TIMBER PRESERVATION Original Filed July 18,1925 I INVENTOR fifiiyddaro iar' ATTORNEYS in my application Ser1al thatis,

Patented Aug. 16, 1927.

PATENT, OFFICE.

HENRY O. GABJJINEB, 0] LNAGOHDA IONTAHA.

'rnnmn rnnsnnvmrion,

Subltitute for application Serial Io. 44,582, filed July 18,-19 25. Thisapplication illed,Apri1 28, 1827.

Serial n0. 187,855.

This invention relates to a method of timber preservation, and moreparticularly to the method of timber preservation described #44:,5352,filed July 18, 1925, of which the present application is a substitute.

The object of the invention is to preserve, to prevent rotting or otheranalo ous destruction of wood, especially telegrap or telephone poles,fence posts andthe like, the ends of which are buried in the ground, orare in contact with the soil.

A feature of the invention resides in the provision of a method for theefiectual impregnation and preservation of poles, posts, timbers and thelike in use, that is, after the have been placed in contact with thegroun thus avoiding the usual separate preservative or impregnationtreatment. Another feature of the invention resides in the provision ofa method for the gradual and progressive and continued im regnation ofthe wood of poles,-posts, tim ers and the like while in use withsterilizing and preserve tive materials over a period of years.

Still another feature of the invention resides in the preservation ofthe wood which is buried in the ground, not onl by the impregnation andsterilization t ereof with preservative material, but also by thesterilization of the soil in contact with and adjacent to or surroundingthe wood.

The process consists generally in placing a quantity of solidarsenic-containing mate rials, either by themselves or in combinationwith other preservative or reactive materials or both, such as solidchemical compounds or mixtures, organic or inorganic, in contact withthat part of the pole, 0st or timber which is buried in the grounpreferably in the form of a ring or collar surrounding the p In the caseof poles of considerable length, one ring or collar of thearseniccontaining compound or composition is placed from six totwenty-four inches below the surface of the ground, and another ring orcollar about half way between the first ring and the bottom of the hole.An additional quantity of the material may be placed in the bottomof thehole.

The object of using the several collars of reservative and antisepticmaterial is to insure by capillary movement of the chem- .terial' the eand the cracks or fissures in the reaction, forming soluble or partlyical compounds or mixtures, which become slowly soluble, both up anddown the pole the complete impregnation of the burie port on of the poleand the soil surroundmg 115.. I

As a result of the action due to the presence of moisture both in thepole and in the surrounding soil, thearsenic-containing maaduallyimpregnates the surface of woo and the adjacent wood fiber and preservesit and also sterilizes the soil immedi ately surrounding the pole,thereby making access to the wood of rottm organisms or agenciespractically impossib e.

A feature of novelty 1s the addition to the arsenic compounds and otherreservative compounds which are either insoluble or only partiallysoluble, of such materials as will increase or control the solubilitythereof, either by attracting moisture or by chemical soluble chemicalcom ounds or mixtures. his feature enables t e advantageous results of minvention to be obtained under varying SO11 (gfidltlOIlS and varyingconditions of rain- As the main constituent of this preservative andantiseptic compound there may be employed either arsenious or arsenicacid or compounds of arsenic such as the arsenates and arsenites ofcopper, zinc, lead and sodium; arsenious and arsenic fluorides,

' arsenic phosphide, and in general any organic or inorganic compoundsof arsenic or mixtures containin arsenic.

In order to facilitate and hasten chemical reaction, any one or more ofthe followin chemical compounds or mixtures thereo may be added,calciumoxide, calcium hydroxide, sodium chloride, sodium carbonate, sodiumbicarbonate or sodium hydroxide.

In the attached drawings:

Fig. 1 is an elevation of the embedded portion of a pole showing theposition of the preserving material.

Fig. 2 is an elevation of the embedded portion of a pole, illustratingthe use of a covering for the collar of preserving material to hold itin place and increase its effectiveness.

Fig. 3 is an elevation of the embedded portion of a pole, illustratingstill another method of increasing the effectiveness of the reservativematerial particularlya plicable or the treatment of poles which avealready begun to decay.

Fig. 4 is an attempt to reproducea photograph of a post still in goodcondition after being in the ground for four years to which my methodhad been applied; and

-Fi 5 is a like attempt and shows the large y rotten condition ofa postof the same wood (lodge-pole pine) subjected to the same conditions, butwithout the application of my method.

Referrin to Fig. 1 of the accompanying drawings, represents the portionof the post or pole embedded in the ground; A represents a mass of dry,solid, arsenic-containing material at the bottom of the hole; Brepresents a ring or collar of like material surrounding the hole, and Ca second ring or collar surrounding the post or pole a shortdistance,from six to twenty-four inches, beloW the surface of theground. The preservative material preferabl is applied during thesetting of the pole, t at is, the mass A is introduced into the hole andthe pole set in, and then as the hole is filled with soil the two ringsB .and C are applied by simply pouring the preservative material in dryform around the pole. In the case of shorter articles such as fenceposts, the post may be set in the hole in the ground, the dirt filled inand then a chisel bar is jammed down around the post, pressing the dirtback from the post, and approximately half a pound of thearsenic-containing material is placed in the hole and the dirt is thentamped back as would ordinarily be the case in setting the post. Withsuch short articles a single ring of preservative material usually issufficient.

As is illustrated in Fig. 2, the ring or collar C of preservativematerial is provided with a covering E of a suitable material such astarred paper or so-called Rubberoid roofing material which may besecured in lace for instance by being tacked to the pole.

his more or less impervious covering serves to prevent a too rapiddiifusion of the preservative material into the soil surrounding thepole, and to thus increase the impregnation of the of impregnation bypreventing the loss or too rapid dissipation o the preservativematerial. This expedient is advisable in cases in which the preservativematerial is relatively soluble or the soil conditions are such thatthere is a tendency for the preservative material to diffuse too rapidlyinto the soil surrounding the pole. The purpose and effeet of thecovering however is not to completely prevent the diifusion of thepreservative and sterilizing material into the soil which, as has beenstated, is desirable, but merely to retard or prevent an undesirablyrapid diffusion. The amount of material pole-and to extend the periodmaterial such as tarred paper or Rubber oid and in addition the skirt Fof Rubberoid or similar impervious material extends from above theground-level down over the collar. The covering C may of course beomitted and only the skirt F employed This expedient is particularlyuseful when .an especially active impregnatlon of the pole is desired asin the treatment of poles which have been in the ground for some timeand in which decay has already started, and also in cases in which thepreservative material is rather soluble under the existing soilconditions or when other conditions such as the porosity of the soil andthe rainfall tend to cause a too rapid diffusion of the preservativematerial away from the pole into the surrounding soil. As is statedabove, the purpose is not to entirely prevent but simply to retard orlimit the diifusion of 'the preservative material into the soil.

In Fig. 4 the dotted line indicates the position of the ring ofpreservative material.

As has been stated, the preservative material preferably is appliedduring the setting of the pole; but with short articles such as fenceposts the preservative material may any decayed wood and then apply thecollar of preservative material, either with or without the imperviouscovering illustrated in Fig. 3. In the treatment of poles which arealready set in the ground to a considerable depth, it is of course notfeasible to place the preservative material at the bottom of the pole asat A in Fig. 1, and it is also diflicult to apply the collar B ofpreservative material. I prefer to treat such articles by driving a bardown beside the pole to a depth of say from twoto six feet correspondinggenerally to the depth of the collar B, preferably at three or morepoints around the hole, pouring'the preservative material into the holesso formed and then filling them up with dirt. The collar C ofpreservative material is then a plied as described by digging away the$01 to a depth of six to twenty-four inches.

The following examples are 1llustrat1 ve of preserving and sterilizingmaterials suitable for use in connection with my -1I1VOI1- tion:

(1) Pulverulent white arsenic; AS203, 90% to 100%.

(2) Sample analysls, As O,, 60% to 99%; organic or inorganic chemicalcompounds of copper, lead, zinc, antimony, lron, calcium and sodium invarying proportions from 39% to 1%.

(3) Sample analysis As O 30% to 60%; organic or inorganic chemicalcompounds 0 copper, lead zinc, antimony, iron, calcium and sodium invarying proportions from 69% to 39%.

(4) Sample analysis As O 5% to 30%; organic or inorganic chemicalcompounds 0 copper, lead, zinc, antimony, iron, calcium and sodlum 1nvarying proportions from (5)-(1), (2), (3) or (4) with an addition of 1to 10% by weight of a chemical compound such as sodium chloride,magnesium chloride, calcium chloride, -monocalcium phosphate or otherdeliquescent chemical compounds for purposes of increasing thesolubility by attracting moisture.

(6)(1), (2), (3) or (4:) with an addition of 1 to 10% by weight of achemical compound such as sodium carbonate or b1- carbonate or magnesiumchloride or other chemical compounds for the purpose of increasing thesolubility of the mixture.

The arsenic component of the COIIIPOSI- tions may be supplied in theform of pure white arsenic or in the, form of a very crude and impurearsenic-containing material such .as is produced as a by-product inmetallurgical smelting practice. The arsenic content of suchmaterial mayrun from say 10 to 95%. The following is a sample analysis showing thepercentages of the principal ingredients of a suitable arsen1ccontainingmaterial:

- Per cent. Arsenic trioxide j 75.2 Copper sulfate 2.2

Silica 3 1 Lead arsenate 3 3 Ferric oxide 2.6 Aluminum oxide 1.4 Calciumoxide 3.2 Lead compounds 2 4 and water, zinc oxide, bismuth oxide,selenium oxide, telluric oxide, sulfur, and antimony oxide in quantitiesless than 1%. It is of course to be understood that the material maycontain the various elements in chemical combinations other than thoselistwill moisture. In less arid regions the moisture already in the soilmay be sufficient to slowly dissolve any soluble ingredients, while theother added materials will assist in rendering soluble such arseniccompounds as are insoluble or difiicultl soluble, or in forming, in thepresence 0 moisture, arsenic compounds which are sufficiently soluble.

I am aware that arsenic compounds have been used to impregnate wood,such methods requiring heating and drying and introduction into thepores of the wood of the arsenical compounds. My method does not requirean such separate impregnation, and is applica le to the untreated polesor the like such as are ordinarily used.

While I have, in the claims, specifically referred to arsenic-containingcompounds, compounds of other metals such as lead, zinc, copper,fluorine, antimony, calcium, iron or sodium act or may act asequivalents, and are included within the scope of my invention.

I claim:

1. The method of preventing against rot decay, and insect injury tothose portions 0 the wood in articles such as posts, poles and pileswhich are buried in the ground which comprises placing in contact withsuch buried portions a solid pulverulent arsenic-containing material ofgradual dissolvability, encasing the'arse-nic containing material with arelatively pervious covering which will permit gradual seepage ofmoisture therethrough to provide for a progressive and continuousimpregnation of the poles with the arsenic-containing material and toprovidle for a sterilization of the surrounding s01 2. The method ofpreventing against rot, decay, and insect injury to t os'e portions ofthe wood in articles such as posts, poles and 1piles which are buried inthe ground whio comprises placing in contact with such buried ortions asolid pulverulent arseniccontaimng material of gradual dissolvability,encaslng the arsenic-containing material with a relatively perviouscovering which ermit gradual seepage of moisture theret rough to providefor a rogressive and continuous impregnation of the poles with thearsenic-containing material and to provide for a sterilization of thesurrounding soil, and controlling the quantity of moisture to thearsenic-containing material to regulate the impregnation andsterilization.

3. The method of preventing against rot, decay and insect injury tothose portions of 8 the wood in articles such as posts, poles and pileswhich are buried in the ground which comprises placing in contact withsuch buried ortions a solid pulverulent arsenic-contaimng material ofgradual dissolvability,

0 combining reactive material with the arseniccontaining material tocontrol the solubility of the arsenic-compounds, encasing thearsenic-containin material with a relativel pervious covermg which willpermit gra ual seepage of moisture therethroughto 'provide for aprogressive and continuous impregnation of the poles with thearsenic-containing material and to provide for a sterilization of thesurrounding soil HENRY C. GARDINER.

